Video of police beating naked man stokes anger in Egypt

CAIRO — Egypt's Interior Minister vowed Saturday to investigate the beating of a naked man by riot police that threatened to further inflame popular anger against security forces, but suggested that initial results absolve the police of direct abuse.

The beating was caught on camera and broadcast live on television late Friday as protests raged in the streets outside the presidential palace. Video showed police trying to bundle the naked man into a police van after beating him.

Less than 24 hours after the incident, several thousand anti-government demonstrators marched again on the palace Saturday denouncing the police and Islamist President Mohammed Morsi after a week of violent protests that claimed more than 60 lives nationwide.

Speaking to reporters after Friday's assault, Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim said that initial results from the public prosecutor's investigation show that 48-year-old Hamada Saber was undressed by "rioters" during skirmishes between police and protesters. He was then hit in the foot by a bird shot, the interior minister said, stopping short of saying if the injury was a result of police firing into the crowds.

"The central security forces then found him lying on the ground and tried to put him in an armored vehicle, though the way in which they did that was excessive," said Ibrahim.

In the footage from Friday, at least seven black-clad riot police beat Saber, whose pants are down around his ankles, with sticks before dragging him along the muddy pavement and tossing him into a police van.

The beating happened as thousands of protesters chanted against Morsi, throwing firebombs and firing flares at the presidential palace as police pumped volleys of tear gas and bird shot into the crowd, killing one protester and wounding more than 90.

The Interior Ministry said in a rare statement that it "regrets" the beating, and that it too is investigating the incident. But it also sought to distance itself — and the police in general — from the abuse, saying that "what took place was carried out by individuals that do not represent in any way the doctrine of all policemen who direct their efforts to protecting the security and stability of the nation and sacrifice their lives to protect civilians."

A statement by Morsi's office called the incident "shocking", but stressed that violence and vandalism of government property is unacceptable.

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Miami Beach hotels seek more political clout

When Miami Beach wanted local hotels to scale-back their popular rooftop parties and bars, Alexander Tachmes fought back.

An attorney who has represented Beach hotels on a myriad of issues, he “cobbled” together a group of his hotelier clients and went before the city commission to ask them to curb the proposed rules.

The hotels won.

It was a learning experience, said Tachmes, who came to believe that the Beach needed a permanent group of industry heavyweights to take political action in the face of restrictive city policies.

With that in mind, Miami Beach’s hotel industry is taking on a decidedly political tone by reviving a previously-formed electioneering organization, just in time for election season on the sandbar.

The group is called Hospitality for a Better Miami Beach, and as an Electioneering Communication Organization (ECO), it can raise unlimited money to run ads, send fliers and make telephone calls about political issues. They’ve also created Miami Beach Hospitality Coalition, which Tachmes said will soon be registered as a non-profit.

Behind the organizations are Tachmes and big-name hoteliers Mike Palma, Executive Vice President of Hospitality for Brio Investment Group (which owns the Clevelander) and the Perry South Beach Hotel General Manager Tim Nardi.

“Political clout is something that will help to further the goals of the industry,” Tachmes said.

Hotels already have their interests represented by the Greater Miami and the Beaches Hotel Association and the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau. But the association is tax-funded and the visitor’s bureau is tax-exempt, so neither can raise or spend money for political purposes.

Stuart Blumberg, who headed the hotel association for 15 years, thinks the industry has enough clout without having to wade into politics.

“You’re getting a group of hoteliers who’ve decided they want a voice in government. And that’s dangerous,” he said of the ECO.

An outspoken leader, Blumberg often took political stances and faced elected officials — and he often found success.

Blumberg led the charge to exempt pool decks and outdoor patios from a constitutional amendment banning smoking, and pushed to delay the start of the school year so that Florida teens could continue working at local hotels. At a farewell gathering after Blumberg announced his retirement, he didn’t hesitate to take a shot at then-Gov. Charlie Crist, calling him out on a proposed tax increase on car rentals.

“We were able to accomplish a lot of things because we weren’t tarnished by, ‘Yeah, I supported that guy or that guy,’” Blumberg said. “You stand and fall on the merits of an issue.”

Citing the huge impact the tourism industry has on Florida, he added: “We don’t need to spend money to win influence.”

According to state figures, the tourism industry has a $67.3 billion economic impact on Florida.

In Miami-Dade, the accommodation industry accounts for 3 percent of the county’s 1 million non-farm jobs, or about 27,000 positions. The industry also contributes about $1 billion in income a year in Miami-Dade, or about 2 percent of total wages.

With a November election in Miami Beach — in which a majority of the city’s commission seats up for grabs — now is the time to translate economic importance into political prominence, said Palma.

In a city where resident-activists are vocal and plentiful, and where residents are often at odds with party-seeking tourists, Palma said city leaders lately have tilted more in favor of residents rather than businesses

Added Tachmes: “The residents of the city benefit by having a thriving hotel industry...all we want is a seat at the table.”

The electioneering committee was registered last year and is currently not active, according to state records.

Tachmes said the group is in the process of recruiting members — whom he would not name — and creating a board, at which time the group will be re-opened. Members are planning to interview candidates to decide who to support in the upcoming elections.

Wendy Kallergis, president and CEO of the hotel association, pointed out that many of the ECO members are also members of her organization. She doesn’t think the new group will be a competitor.

“We’re not able to do some of the things they can do,” she said. “I think it’s going to strengthen the voice on the Beach.”

Miami Herald staff writer Douglas Hanks contributed to this report.

Follow @Cveiga on Twitter.

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Two men found shot to death, dog fatally wounded inside car on Miami street

An early morning shooting in Model City left two men dead and a puppy fatally wounded.

The shooting happened about 1:15 a.m. Friday at Northwest 41st Street and 13th Avenue, Miami police spokeswoman Kenia Reyes said.

After responding to a 911 call about shots heard in the area, officers found a Buick Lacrosse "completely riddled with bullet holes" and two men in their 20s shot to death inside, Reyes said.

Friday afternoon, police identified the men as Joshua Whack, 26, and Eric Fussell, 23.

Also inside the car: a 4-month-old pitbull puppy who was shot in the head.

The wounded dog was taken to Miami-Dade Animal Services for treatment, where it was euthanized due to the severity of the injury.

“Unfortunately, the trauma was severe,” said Animal Services spokeswoman Xiomara Mordcovich.

Police are still investigating the shooting. Reyes said it’s too early to tell if the incident was gang-related.

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Apple edges out Samsung for mobile phone sales lead in fourth quarter

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Apple Inc became the top mobile phone seller for the first time in the lucrative U.S. market during the fourth quarter of 2012, outshining arch rival Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, a report by Strategy Analytics showed.

Apple‘s share of the U.S. mobile phone market, including feature phones and smartphones, jumped to 34 percent from 26 percent, while Samsung’s share grew to 32.3 percent from 31.8 percent, the research firm said.

Samsung had been the top mobile phone vendor in the US since 2008, the firm said. Indeed, for the full year, Samsung still held the crown for mobile phone sales; it had a 31.8 percent share of the U.S. market in 2012, against Apple’s 26.2 percent.

Apple investors have recently been anxious about the future growth prospects for the company amid intense competition from Samsung’s cheaper phones, powered by Google’s Android software, and signs the premium smartphone market may be close to saturation in developed markets.

Overall, mobile phone shipments rose 4 percent to 52 million units in the U.S. during the fourth quarter of 2012, driven by strong demand for 4G smartphones and 3G feature phones.

But in all of 2012, U.S. mobile phone shipments fell 11 percent to 166.9 million, Strategy Analytics said.

Apple sold 17.7 million iPhones in the U.S. in the fourth quarter, up 38 percent from the previous year, driven by aggressive marketing of its new iPhone 5 and steep carrier subsidies, the firm said. Samsung shipped 16.8 million phones during the same period.

In the international arena, Samsung Electronics, with a range of handsets, has overtaken Apple as the world’s top smartphone seller.

(Reporting by Poornima Gupta; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

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Side Effects NY Premiere 2013

Sorry Niners fans, come Sunday, you won't have People's Sexiest Man Alive in your corner.

At the New York premiere of his new movie Side Effects, the 32-year-old actor, donning a Dolce & Gabbana suit, revealed to ET that while he loves the 49ers quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, and thinks they have a "sick offense, and they're on fire right now... they're probably favored to win a little bit," he admits ultimately, "I kinda want the [Baltimore Ravens] to win."

As far as Super Bowl plans go, Tatum will actually be in the Big Easy on Sunday, in the middle of the madness.

PICS: Stars Predict the Super Bowl Winner

"I'm gonna be there in [New Orleans]. I'll be at Saints & Sinners, my bar down on Bourbon Street." Saints & Sinners opened in November 2012.

Side Effects is a thriller surrounding the pharmaceutical industry, that pairs Channing for a third and final time with director Steven Soderbergh, who announced his retirement from directing after this film.

"I wish there could be a fourth [film together], but he's apparently done.... This movie is special, and it's kind of one that he's always wanted to make."

See Also: Beyonce Shows Off All-Girl Bowl Band

Soderbergh previously worked with Channing in filming Haywire, and Magic Mike.

Watch the video above for more on the movie, in theaters February 8, and Channing on his co-star Jude Law's disarming accent.

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'He threatened to chop her up': Wife of alleged murderer says suspect vowed to kill her just days before crime

He said he'd kill me, too, the wife of an accused quarter-million-dollar insurance murderer testified today.

"He threatened to kill me," Christina Moreno, 37, told a Manhattan jury today, testifying against estranged husband Edward Demirdjian.

The wife's testimony did little to help Demirdjian, 57, a former limo owner from Orlando, Fla. who is on trial for killing young, pretty Sherra Morgenstern as she slept in her bed at the Jefferson Houses project on Second Avenue in 2009.

Lead prosecutor Shanda Strain, in arguing with Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Charles Solomon, revealed outside the jury's hearing that Demirdjian was quite vivid in his threats to the wife — made as they honeymooned in the Dominican Republic just days before the murder.

"He threatened to chop her up," the prosecutor told the judge.

Demirdjian allegedly killed Morgenstern in an attempt to keep custody of their three year old daughter and collect on a $250,000 insurance policy. Trial testimony is expected to continue through next week.

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Frontier Airlines adds new Fort Lauderdale route

Starting Saturday, Frontier Airlines is adding nonstop service between Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Trenton-Mercer Airport in New Jersey.

Flights between South Florida and Princeton/Trenton are scheduled for Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Frontier already offered service between Fort Lauderdale and its hub at Denver International Airport. The company is offering introductory fares on its new route for as little as $99 each way.

The airline also launched flights between Trenton-Mercer and Fort Myers, New Orleans and Tampa this week.

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Driver falls asleep at wheel, crashes into patrol car in Broward

A woman who fell asleep while driving after midnight Thursday plowed into a highway trooper’s patrol car that had its lights flashing at an Interstate 95 exit ramp, police said.

Laura Cohen, 23, was driving north toward the I-95 ramp to Davie Boulevard in Broward at 12:25 a.m., according to an Florida Highway Patrol report.

A trooper was sitting in his car, parked at the exit ramp to signal warn drivers that the road was closed for construction. The construction area was marked with traffic cones, reduce speed signs and flashing arrow boards.

Cohen, who had apparently fallen asleep, drove her 2010 Toyota Yaris through the traffic cones and crashed into the back of Trooper Byron Johnson’s car.

Cohen and Johnson were treated for “very minor injuries” on the road, FHP spokesman Sgt. Mark Wysocky said Thursday.

Cohen was ticketed for careless driving.

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OpenStack at Linux.conf.au 2013

I’m writing this blog post from Canberra Australia, while attending the Linux.conf.au (LCA) open source conference. Among the people who do these sorts of things, LCA has a well deserved reputation as one of the very best open source conferences in the world.

Geeks from across Australia and New Zealand, and from across the rest of the world, come together for a week in January (summer in this part of the world) to talk about everything from the intricate technical details of Linux kernel design to pushing the state of the art in file systems and issues deploying practical wireless cryptography. Softer but equally important topics such as Open Government, gender balance in technology, and international legal issues are also discussed. Read more about OpenStack at Linux.conf.au 2013 »

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Jessica Simpson Talks Weight Watchers Weight Loss

The always candid Jessica Simpson is getting personal about her own weight loss journey for Weight Watchers' "I'm Only Human And I Did It" project, in which real women share how they were able to finally achieve their weight loss goals.

"I was happy to be pregnant. I was happy to be gaining weight and eating whatever I wanted," she admits in her own video for the inspiring project. "I was the girl that never asked the doctor how much she weighed. I stepped on the scale backwards because I was just gonna enjoy my pregnancy and have fun."

Pics: Adorable Tots -- Celebs and Their Cute Kids!

But about one month after her daughter Maxwell was born, Jessica was faced with the startling realization of just how much weight she gained during her pregnancy at her first meeting with Weight Watchers.

"It was the first time I had to come face-to-face with the scale, and I looked at the scale, and I thought my life was completely over," she recalls about the first meeting, which was held at her house where she was surrounded by friends. "I was not expecting to see the number that I saw, because it's just never a number that I could fathom weighing -- but I did. ... I had a moment there where I was standing on the scale, and faced with a severe truth -- and I didn't know if I could do it. I really didn't know if it was gonna happen for me."

But Jessica ended up having nothing to worry about -- she lost over 50 pounds following the program.

"I'm seriously only human, just like you guys," she stresses "It is hard to lose weight but when I teamed up with Weight Watchers it actually wasn't as hard as I thought. It was just something that became a lifestyle."

Video: Jessica Simpson on Surpassing 50 Pound Weight Loss

Though she does share that with her second pregnancy, she's definitely doing things a lot differently.

"Now I'm pregnant again, and I'm looking at the scale, and I'm making the right decisions with what I'm eating," she says, clearly overjoyed. "I still have my desserts -- just not four of them."

Check out the video to hear some of the frustrations Jessica initially had losing the baby weight, and click here to watch and get inspired by other people's weight loss stories.

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